Many converters are often out in the field, exposed to the elements, and at times in a very hot or very cold environment. Because they contain electrolytic capacitors, in particular, large electrolytic capacitors to support some internal high-voltage dc bus, they often end up not lasting very long because the capacitors die prematurely even if the remainder of the circuitry is good. In some cases, the capacitor may not completely die, but it may degrade to a point where its performance is reduced dramatically, so that eventually it shuts off for safety reasons.
The same problem occurs in the power supplies of computers and other electronic equipment, wherein the capacitors eventually die out. What is needed is a system and method for monitoring capacitor health in such electronic equipment and for making capacitors easily exchangeable.